Paintbrush keeper



March 6, 1934.

R. F. JOHNSON 1,949,912

PAINTBRUSH KEEPER Filed March 25, 1931 El Q i g to maintain the brushes pliable, or a vapor given Patented Mar. 6, 1934 UNITE? is TATS PATENT QFF'ICE PAINTBR'USH KEEPER Application March 25, 1931, Serial No. 525,168

5 Claims.

My invention pertains to a paint brush keeper, and has as its principal object the provision of a covered receptacle from which air can be exeluded, and which may contain either a liquid off from a volatile liquid placed in the receptacle, to serve the same purpose, and which will be so sealed as to prevent the escape of such vapors. g It is a further object to provide such a paint mbrush keeper which may be formed in part of the cans in which paint is delivered, or which can be otherwise cheaply manufactured, and which is thus so inexpensive in cost as to be within the means of every household.

Other objects, and especially such as pertain to the structural details of my invention, will be ascertained from a study of the drawing and of this specification, wherein my invention is disclosed in its preferred form, and of the claims 30 which define my invention at the end or" this specification.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the paint brush keeper, and Figure 2 is a vertical section there through.

Figure 3 is a detail section on an enlarged scale through the seal of the form shown in Figiu'es 1 and 2.

Figure 4 is a detail section, on a vertical plane, of a modified form, and Figure 5 is elevation with parts broken away, showing a locking means for such a device.

A receptacle 1 is provided, which may take various forms.

Conveniently there may be used for the purpose the ordinary can in which paint is delivered to the consumer, and which is regularly manufactured with a sealing channel 6, at its upper edge, into which the ordinary paint can cover is fitted when the can is filled with paint.

Cooperating with the receptacle 1 is a cover 2,

i the receptacle 1.

Within the receptacle, I prefer that means be provided for suspending the brushes slightly above the bottom of the receptacle.

While such The handles are provided with purpose.

holes for the Such a device may be made cheaply,

and can be inserted within the receptacle 1 and removed therefrom as desired.

The upper end of the post 3 is shown to project above the upper edge of the receptacle 1, where it is received within the inverted cover 2. The arms 4, as seenin Figure 2, are preferably sufficiently long to nearly contact with the inner Walls of the cover, hence the brushes, when received upon these arms, cannot fall or be disengaged from the arms so long as the cover is in place. This insures that the brushes will be held pendant, even though the device be handled carelessly, and will not fall from the support to rest the bristles upon the bottom of the receptacle, and thereby to bend or break them.

In use, there would ordinarily be placed within the receptacle, a liquid, as indicated at 13, of such character as to maintain the brushes soft and pliant. This might be such a liquid as turpentine or linseed oil, in which case the brushes should dip into the oil and preferably be covered by it, or it might be a more volatile liquid, such as lacquer thinner or ethyl acetate. Such liquids would produce an atmosphere within the closed receptacle which would exclude air and prevent oxidation of the paint that might remain on the brushes, and at the same time would tend to dissolve the paint in them. In order to prevent escape of such vapors, and to prevent admission of air, the channel 6 would ordinarily be filled with a liquid to act as a seal. Such liquid might be oil, water, or anything found suitable. Ordinarily, it could be simply provided by wiping off the brush into the channel, and the paint, varnish, or other matter removed from the brush would form a seal.

The channel might be inside the receptacle, or outside, and the receptacle might be other than the paint can described. For instance, in Figures 4 and 5, the receptacle has been shown without the type or" channel 6 which has been described, but there has been shown at 6 a channel se cured to the inside of the receptacle and of inclined character. Pressing the cover 2 down upon this inclined channel will serve to form a tight seal. This may be assisted by the employment at this point (or in the bottom of the channel) of a mass of soft packing material, such as soft rope, indicated at 9. This rope will absorb the oil or other sealing liquid, and serve to prevent its volatiliaation and loss, and the rope itself will assist in packing and sealing the joint. The joint may also be held tight by the provision of locking means, such as the interlocked fingers 11 and 12 (see Figure 5) one on the cover and the other on the receptacle.

For convenience in carrying the brush keeper about, a bail 14 may be applied to the receptacle, or if the receptacle and cover are locked together, it may be secured upon the cover.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. In combination with a paint can, having a sealing channel formed within the upper periphery of the can and adapted to receive a cover to enclose paint within the can, an inverted cover of appreciable depth, to be received in said channel after the removal of the normal cover and the paint, said channel being adapted to receive sealing liquid, and means disposed partly within the receptacle and partly within the cover, and supported solely from the can bottom, to support a paint brush within said can and inverted cover.

2. In combination with a paint can adapted to receive a cover to normally seal paint within the can, and having a channel formed upon the inside wall of said can below the upper edge thereof, an inverted cover of appreciable depth, to be received in said channel upon removal of the cover and paint, said channel being adapted to receive a sealing liquid, and means independent of the can and cover upstanding from the bottom of the can to a point above its top to support a paint brush within said can and inverted cover, when the latter is seated within said channel.

3. In combination with a paint can or the like and an inverted cover of appreciable depth to seal the same, removable means to support a paint brush therein in pendant position comprising a base resting upon the bottom, a post upstanding from the base to extend above the upper edge of the can, and outstanding arms supported at the upper end of the post for the reception and support of the handles of the brush by lateral movement of the latter relative to the arms, and extending substantially to the walls of the inverted cover, whereby the brush handles may not be disengaged therefrom while the cover is in place.

4. In combination with a receptacle open at its top, a cover to seal the same, removable means to maintain a paint brush in pendant position comprising a base of a diameter approximating the size of the entrance, and a post upstanding therefrom, arms projecting from the upper end of the post substantially to the periphery of the member within which such upper end of the post is received, to pass through perforations in the brushs handle, thereby to maintain the brush pendant and prevent its accidental disengagement from the arms.

5. In combination with a receptacle open at its top, an inverted cover of appreciable depth seating upon the receptacle to close the same, a base adapted to be supported upon the bottom of the receptacle, and to project above its top substantially to the inverted bottom of the cover, arms projecting laterally from the post within the cover, to pass through the handle of and to support a brush in pendant position, the base being of a diameter approximating that of the entrance to the receptacle, and the arms being of a length overall substantially the diameter of the cover, whereby disengagement of the brush from the arm can only be effected following removal of the cover.

ROBERT F. JOHNSON. 

